Should Australia’s Kangaroo Meat Trade Be Banned in the EU

In Australia they can legally kill and eat Kangaroo’s, something I didn’t really know about. But this has come under fierce debate, people are objecting to the killing of the animal in order to sell the meat to the open market because if a mother Roo is shot with a Joey in her pouch then the hunter has to kill the Joey.

How the food is sold and prepared is interesting, they use the hide of the animal as leather and the meat for human consumption, also all unused meat is fed to other animals. This industry may sound barbaric, but is efficient and in face value no more mean than the beef, lamb and pork industry in the UK. It is hypocritical to disagree with Kangaroo killing for food then to eat a nice piece of pork or beef for dinner.

Killing a small and defenceless animal would be sickening to many people but most of the time not killing the baby kangaroo is an even more cruel fate then an instant death. Most of the time the Joey would have to starve to death and fall to predation.

I agree with the hunters this brings apart the hunt-masters in the UK hunting foxes by hound. And the Hunters in Australia killing Kangaroo’s efficiently and effectively with a gun, I have seen on TV how they hunt and these hunters are trained marksmen who have been shooting for a while they almost always get an instant kill. also these hunters have to make money in order to survive, it is their choice to kill a kangaroo in order to put food on the table. But some people disagree saying killing a baby kangaroo is cruel and inhumane.

I myself wouldn’t mind having a nice Roo Steak for dinner /drool (apparently they taste very nice).

What is your opinion? Please Post a comment below and get on with the debate :D.

Author: Caleb Law age: 13

2 responses to Should Australia’s Kangaroo Meat Trade Be Banned in the EU

I have to say that I would like to know where you get your information from? You are right about killing a female and you kill a baby kangaroo but you have alas missed some information out. The baby kangaroo you are referring to is the “at-foot” baby yet you didn’t mention the “pouch” young who have their heads bashed in with a heavy object or have their heads chopped off.

When a kangaroo is killed in the “bush” it is then hooked on to the back of a truck and driven around all night in the dust and flies before it is placed in storage. Russia up until recently the importers of some 70% of all kangaroo meat has banned the product on health and hygiene reasons.

When kangaroos are killed in the “bush” for their skins, no one checks that they have been shot correctly and the meat is just left in the field! Hardly efficient! Before you ask I have been to Australia many many times so I know what goes on. This is just the tip of the ice berg and a lot of what gets written by the industry is very misleading.

While many people in the EU would like to have as much of the EU meat market to themselves and reduce imports from outside the EU, they fail to see the benefits that more international trade can bring. The EU is gaining strength in its ability to supply what are becoming specialty produce exports, for example non-gm foods, and can benefit from increased export opportunities that come from that and other EU initiatives. At they same time, members of their communities can enjoy the variety and health benefits that come from the availability of healthy nutritious foods such as the high quality game meat, kangaroo. As for the claim that it is not healthy, the harvesting and processing of kangaroo meat, especially that produced for human consumption is highly regulated in Australia, and there is an extremely high standard of compliance to the regulations in all commercial kangaroo meat production. I regularly eat a lot of kangaroo mince, and the only time I have found it to not be in excellent condition is when it is past its use by date. Kangaroo steak is even better. While I don’t know about the quality of UK meat, I wonder where is any evidence of lack of hygiene in its production. While many complain about young kangaroos being killed in the harvest, the truth is that culling solves the problem of the overpopulation of kangaroos, much of which is caused by agricultural development.